The Young Abe Kōbō’s Engagement in Post-War Japanese Literary and Artistic Societies

Abe Kōbō represents a milestone in Japanese literature. He stands as the ideal link between modern and contemporary times, the best embodiment of so-called “advanced modernism”, halfway between modernism and postmodernism, together with authors such as Endō Shūsaku, Nakagami Kenji and Ōe Kenzaburō. This article analyses his involvement in Yoru no kai (The Night Society) and Seiki no kai (The Century Society), two artistic-literary societies that played a very important role in the movement of cultural rebirth of Japan in post-war years.